Doctor Aphra comic #26: Worst Among Equals, Part I by Simon Spurrier

"Doctor Aphra #26: Worst Among Equals, Part I" by Simon Spurrier, illustrated by Emilio Laiso and Rachelle Rosenberg
     What a wonderful issue!! Suspense, intrigue, disturbing realities! We get to see Aphra and 0-0-0's plight play itself out while Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba comfortably watch from afar...
     So, to recap, we left our favorite rogue archaeologist with a terrifying dilemma...Dr. Cornelius Evazan implanted a proximity bomb into 0-0-0 so that if he and Aphra stray more than twenty meters apart or one of them dies, they both blow up! ...and 0-0-0 is unrestrained...any tampering with his personality core and the same fate awaits the two ill-fated beings. But at least she's off Accresker Jail!...not very consoling under the circumstances.
     0-0-0 and Aphra land on Milvayne (Tam Posla's homeworld)and get through due to 0-0-0's special brand of convincing.
     Dr. Evazan has made it so that he can watch their every move through 0-0-0's eyes and he calls his venture "Study of the Reciprocal Longevity of Variant Dreadfulness" OR "How Long Before the Dumb Monsters Kill Each Other?" We're introduced to this by way of him showing the footage from 0-0-0's eyes to Ponda Baba, his long-time pal. Apparently they plan on lying low while Evazan builds Baba a new arm! They're literally just chilling on the couch watching the feed (see below). It's quite funny despite it's true depravity.
     This quote from Evazan is deeply chilling: "Hope is such a wonderful parameter in behavioral studies." So creepy to see the word that has meant so much since the beginning of Star Wars be twisted into something so incredibly cruel!
     A super cute quote coming from, of all beings, 0-0-0, "You say Palpateen, I say Palpatyne." I love how Spurrier turn the tomayto--tomahto argument into a Star Wars thing! And I myself used to say Palpatyne back before the prequels came out.
     Phew, 0-0-0 keeps hitting Aphra where it hurts verbally and it is not pretty. I keep exclaiming aloud and covering my mouth with my hand. This is good and gut-wrenching.
     All-in-all, a fine follow up to "The Catastrophe Con"! And the ending gives us that tantalizing hope for Aphra then dashes it to pieces! I absolutely cannot wait for the next issue!

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